Luxman Aims to Reach More Vinyl Enthusiasts with New High-End Turntable

Luxman is hoping to reach a “slightly wider range of vinyl enthusiasts” with a new turntable that’s based on the highly regarded PD-171A turntable it introduced several years ago.

Although considerably less expensive than the $7,000 PD-171A, the PD-151 still costs almost four grand ($3,895) owing to its high-precision design. It’s a belt-drive table featuring the same belt used in the 171A, a new brushless high-torque DC motor, three speeds with independent pitch adjustment, and an anti-resonant base with a machined aluminum top plate that’s almost a half-inch thick and a record platter that weighs 9 pounds.

Luxman says it has gone to “extraordinary lengths” to ensure precise platter speed, starting with its sine wave/PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) power supply, which is said to provide “ultra-stable” direct current to the DC motor, which in turn relies on a “Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) feedback control loop” to continually monitor the speed. The platter, which acts as a flywheel to suppress speed variations, spins on special “polyether ether ketone” (PEEK) thrust bearings and brass radial bearings.

The payoff, according to Luxman, is exceptionally stable platter rotation with a wow & flutter rating of less than 0.04%, weighted RMS.

To further suppress vibration and resonance, the turntable is supported by four large, rubber isolation feet, each of which has its own height adjustor. Rubber damping mounts inside the turntable base are designed to isolate the chassis from two additional sources of potential vibration: the motor and power transformer.

For the Jelco tonearm, Luxman specified a static balance, S-shaped design 7 inches in length with one-point cross suspension. Overall length is 229 mm, while effective length is 214 mm with an overhang of 15 mm. The supplied counterweight accommodates phono cartridges from 4 to 12 grams, or up to 19 grams with an optional counterweight.